OATH OF ALLEGIANCE [caption title]

[Civil War]: Whitaker, Helen Muir

Published by Camden, S.C., 1865

Partially-printed form accomplished in manuscript, 8 1/2 x 6 1/4 inches, printed on lined paper. Old folds. Scattered staining. Very good. A partially-printed post-war Oath of Allegiance, sworn and signed by Helen Muir Whitaker, the mother of a Confederate soldier from Camden, South Carolina. This oath, accomplished barely three weeks after Buckner's surrender on May 26, 1865, appears to have been hastily printed on a torn sheet of lined paper. The oath itself demands broad and uncompromising loyalty, reading that: "I, [Helen Whitaker], aged [50] years, a resident of [Kershaw Dist. S.C.], do solemnly and sincerely promise and swear, that I utterly repudiate all allegiance to the so-called Confederate States of America, or any other power, State or Sovereignty whatsoever within the United States, hostile or inimical thereto; that I will to the best of my knowledge and ability, support and defend the Sovereignty of the United States and the Constitution and Laws thereof, against all enemies, foreign or domestic; and that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, performing all duties that may be required of good and lawful citizens. I do further swear, that I take this obligation, freely and willingly, without any mental reservation or secret evasion of purpose whatever, and that I will well and faithfully discharge its claims - 'So HELP ME GOD.'" Helen Whitaker was the mother of William Whitaker, a ranger in Colonel William McCreight Shannon's cavalry and later the 7th South Carolina Cavalry. Shannon himself was a Camden native and represented Kershaw County in the South Carolina House of Representatives for the 44th General Assembly, which became the first to vote for secession. He was killed in the last duel fought in South Carolina after accusing former comrade Col. Ellerbe Boggan Crawford Cash's wife of fraud in 1880. As per Lincoln's Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, residents of former Confederate states were allowed to regain their United States citizenship, but only after swearing oaths such as this. Though many of these oaths must have been printed and signed in the early days of Reconstruction, they rarely survive and remain rather scarce on the market. Seller Inventory # WRCAM57536

Bibliographic Details

Title: OATH OF ALLEGIANCE [caption title]
Publisher: Camden, S.C.
Publication Date: 1865